Many conventional powered wire strippers use one or multiple stationary or rotating sharp blades to cut open the wire insulation for metal reclamation. The blades are typically mounted on a rotating shaft having ball bearings. All blades, no matter what they are made of or how well they are made, will eventually get dull after extensive use. Also, the accidental feed of hard objects into the stripper is a frequent event that often leads to chipping the cutting edge of a blade.
However, when blades need to be replaced, the conventional multiple-blade stripper requires the removal of the whole shaft and the bearing on the shaft ends, which is time consuming and requires special tools and skills. Anytime the shaft and the bearings are removed there is a risk of damaging components and losing valuable operational time in wire reclamation.
Conventional wire stripper shaft repair or replacement requires removing the top cover and side covers of the stripper and removing a retaining clip and removing the drive chain in order to remove or sharpen blades on the monolithic shaft. In order to pull the supporting block off the bearing, a special pulling tool is required. The process is repeated in reverse order to install the shaft and bearings with a special tube and hammer. The supporting block is reinstalled with a hammer in order to drop in the assembly. The retaining clip is reinserted and the chain is reconnected. The top and two side covers are put back into place. The process is time consuming and labor intensive.
Conventional blade removal and installation also requires training and practice. Part damage to the shaft, the cutting blades and the bearings is common, especially after repeated procedures. Not only are trained man hours lost but machine downtime factors into the total cost of removing or sharpening the cutting blades. None of the prior art solutions can offer satisfactory results because they don't offer a quick and easy way to remove a stripper shaft for cutting blade maintenance. Therefore, there has been a long felt need in the market for a powered wire stripper capable of quick and inexpensive shaft maintenance unmet until the Applicant's present disclosure.